Smoltz Pitches, Feels No Pain

Written by Colin on May 25, 2008 – 9:30 am

John Smoltz pitched an inning for the AA Mississippi Braves last night, giving up one hit and most importantly feeling no pain.  Smoltz recently pitched a session in Atlanta to his teammates, where he revealed his way of dealing with his recent shoulder issues.  He’s dropped his arm slot, but hasn’t lost effectiveness.  He threw 12 pitches in his inning of work, 8 of them strikes.  Smoltz has successfully changed the angle of his arm slot in the past, throwing sidearm in the late ’90s.

Smoltz arrives back in Atlanta today to be re-evaluated.  He may continue his rehab stint but he could also be activated from the DL soon.  He’ll pitch out of the bullpen, likely closing games for the Braves.  Smoltz has been in the role before, with 154 saves from 2001-2004.

Smoltz will be part of a trio of pitchers that will greatly enhance the depth of the Braves already quality bullpen.  Rafael Soriano, the intended closer at the start of the season, has been battling elbow tendinitis.  Soriano pitched an inning for the Mississippi Braves on Friday, and could be activated either today or tomorrow.  He’s hitting 93 with his fastball, which is good news.

Mike Gonzalez had Tommy John surgery last year and is nearing return as well.  He’s a dominant lefty that the Braves got from the Pirates for Adam LaRoche.  It may take him some time to regain pre-surgery form, but with Smoltz and Soriano he could make a huge difference.  Even the players are excited about it - the AJC quoted Brian McCann as saying “You get Smoltz and Soriano back, and Gonzo, it’s going to be nasty. Those are guys who’ve done it before, and we’ve got guys like Blaine and Acosta who’ve filled in and done an awesome job.”

If you think the bullpen is nasty now, give it two weeks.

Tags: John Smoltz, Mike Gonzalez, Rafael Soriano
Posted in Injuries |